Sunday, June 22, 2014

And Millenials reported that negative church teachings and other organized religions’ views on LGBT issues has played a role in their rejection of their respective childhood faith.
“While many churches and people in the pews have been moving away from their opposition to LGBT rights over the last decade, this new research provides further evidence that negative teachings on this issue have hurt churches’ ability to attract and retain young people,” said PRRI CEO Dr. Robert P. Jones. “Nearly one-third of Millennials who left their childhood religion say unfavorable church teachings about or treatment of gay and lesbian people played a significant role in their decision to head for the exit.”
Among Millennials who no longer identify with the religion in which they were raised, 31 percent say that negative teachings about, or treatment of, gay and lesbian people was either a somewhat important (17 percent) or very important (14 percent) factor in their disaffiliation from organized religion.

Can we be honest here? What do you think the percentage of children leaving their childhood affiliation over the last - say 50 years would be? I don’t know of a survey that tracks it but I would bet dollars to donuts the number would ring up somewhere in the 70% range.

I don’t have a survey to back me up but what I do have is the fact that none of these 70% who have disaffiliated appear to be filling the pews of the ever more diversity friendly episcopal group since their membership numbers have been in a freefall since around 2003. Wonder if anyone on the survey team asking questions bothered to find out just how involved these youth were in their churches? How many were active in bible studies? How many were actually Christian?

This “leaving” that takes place among our youth, it is the reason we are told to raise them up so they know the Lord. If they have that anchor, they may drift away but the anchor will always show them the way home. Who among you did not leave the church of your youth when you became of age? Think it might be say somewhere around 30%?

One more question for the ages. I know many people who have left the “church” because they said it didn’t really stand for anything. Could it be the lack of conviction has lost many a “church” their membership? One thing for sure, a search for the truth can only be found where truth resides. If your church has a cut and paste bible, you might want to consider going somewhere they actually believe the Bible.